Network profiling system

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for network profiling that may be used by a provider of high bandwidth connections to facilitate connectivity and service order entry by customers are disclosed. Typically, the customer has a plurality of client. The network profiling method generally comprises specifying at least one network configuration profile, the specifying including selecting a preferred CPE, selecting a network mode, selecting a network feature, selecting at least one network feature parameter including a static parameter, and defining a value for the static network feature parameter, wherein the network configuration profile includes at least one dynamic network feature parameter, the dynamic parameter having an unspecified value in the network configuration profile. The method further includes selecting one of the at least one network configuration profile and specifying values for the at least one dynamic parameter and optionally includes a validation process for validating the specification of the preferred CPE, the network mode, the network feature, the network feature parameter, and the value for the static network feature parameter. The selecting the preferred CPE may be before or after selecting the network mode and network feature.

This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 09/457,605 filed Dec. 8,1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,594,695.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to telecommunications. Morespecifically, a network profiling system that may be used by a providerof high bandwidth connections to facilitate connectivity and serviceorder entry by customers and/or clients is disclosed.

2. Description of Related Art

With the increasing popularity of the Internet and telecommuting,service providers such as DSL and Internet cable providers are providingmore and more high bandwidth connections to users at remote locationssuch as homes, home offices, and corporations. Examples of highbandwidth connection service providers include incumbent local exchangecarriers (ILECs) such as Pacific Bell or PacBell of California andcompetitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) such as Covad CommunicationsGroup, Inc., assignee of the subject patent application. The ILECs andCLECs are collectively referred to herein as LECs.

LECs typically have numerous customers such as Internet serviceproviders (ISPs) and/or corporations. Each ISP generally allows Internetaccess by its subscribers via the ISP while each corporation allowsaccess by its employees, contractors, and/or other parties to itscorporate network and/or the Internet via the corporate network. TheseISP subscribers and corporate employees, contractors, etc. are generallyreferred to herein as the end users or clients of the customers.

The LEC generally provides layer 2, such as ATM layer, connectivitywhile the customers generally provide layer 3, such as IP layer,connectivity to the clients. The entry of connectivity and service orderoften requires the input of various network configuration information bythe customer and, optionally, by the client., in order for the LEC toprovide layer 2 connectivity, for example. In addition, a client premiseequipment (CPE) is typically installed at the premise of each client andnetwork configuration data is generally utilized to configure the CPE,such as by downloading the network configuration data to the CPE.

One method for collecting the network configuration data includesproviding an interface which serves to collect both the networkconfiguration data and information specific to a particular client. Theinterface may comprise a set of web-based order forms accessible to thecustomers from the LEC via the Internet, for example. The order formsobtain the order information for each client and thus obtainclient-specific information such as the client site and the client's CPEtechnical parameters.

However, such an interface may be inefficient. For example, the orderforms require the input of all parameters such that, although certainnetwork configuration parameters may be similar or identical for severalor all of the customer's clients, the same information must be inputtedfor each client. Such redundancy or multiple inputs of the sameinformation not only leads to inefficiency but also may serve as asource for errors.

In addition, although the order forms require the input ofclient-specific information, certain client-specific information, suchas the client location and certain IP-level information, may not beavailable at the time of the ordering. Because certain client-specificinformation may not be available at the time of the service ordering,the customer may input temporary client configurations which are to bereplaced with the actual configurations at a later time. Such aworkaround can complicate both the support and the training processesfor the ordering process.

The unavailability of certain client-specific information at the time ofthe ordering can also result in additional order information obtainingprocesses that must be undertaken in order to complete the orderingprocess. Such additional order information obtaining processes mayinclude subsequent communication with the customer or the client via thetelephone or other mechanisms. As is evident, such additional orderinformation obtaining processes further decreases the overall efficiencyand complexity of the ordering process.

The above-described interface also may not include verificationprocesses for verification of data taken during the initial orderinformation obtaining processes as well as data taken during thesubsequent additional order information obtaining processes. Thus, thedata taken during the various stages of the order taking process may notbe compatible or valid. Thus, certain orders may need to be rejected dueto insufficient or conflicting network configuration data.

It would thus be desirable to simplify and improve theuser-friendliness, efficiency, and accuracy of order entry process suchthat errors and redundant data entries are minimized.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Systems and methods for network profiling that may be used by a providerof high bandwidth connections to facilitate connectivity and serviceorder entry by customers and/or clients are disclosed. It should beappreciated that the present invention can be implemented in numerousways, including as a process, a system, a method, or a computer readablemedium such as a computer readable storage medium or a computer networkwherein program instructions are sent over optical or electroniccommunication lines. Several inventive embodiments of the presentinvention are described below.

A method for ordering client service by a customer from a serviceprovider, the customer having a plurality of clients, generallycomprises specifying at least one network configuration profile, thespecifying including selecting a preferred CPE, selecting a networkmode, selecting a network feature, selecting at least one networkfeature parameter including a static parameter, and defining a value forthe static network feature parameter, wherein the network configurationprofile includes at least one dynamic network feature parameter, thedynamic parameter having an unspecified value in the networkconfiguration profile. The method further includes selecting one of theat least one network configuration profile and specifying values for theat least one dynamic parameter.

The specifying at least one network configuration profile may furtherinclude a validation process for validating the specification of thepreferred CPE, the network mode, the network feature, the networkfeature parameter, and the value for the static network featureparameter.

The specification of the preferred CPE may be performed before selectingthe network mode and network feature. Alternatively, the selecting thepreferred CPE may be from a list of CPEs supporting the selected networkmode and selected network feature. Further, the specification of atleast one network configuration profile may include specification of atleast one dynamic network feature parameter. The specification of atleast one network configuration profile further includes specificationof at most one mode for each mode type. Specification of at most onemode for each mode type may optionally include specification of at mostone mode for each of forwarding type mode and WAN encapsulation typemode, wherein specification of at most one mode for the forwarding typemode may include specification of one of bridging mode and routing modeand wherein specification of at most one mode for the WAN encapsulationtype mode may include specification of one of multi-protocol mode andPPP mode.

A method for specification of a network configuration profile forordering client service by a customer from a service provider, whereinthe customer has a plurality of clients, is also disclosed. The methodgenerally includes providing a list of supported CPEs, selecting atleast one CPE from the list of supported CPEs, providing modes supportedby the selected CPE, selecting at least one mode from the modessupported by each selected CPE, providing features corresponding to theat least one selected mode of the selected CPEs, selecting at least onefeature corresponding to the selected mode, providing parameterscorresponding to the selected feature of the selected CPE, specifying atleast one of the parameters as a static parameter, defining each staticparameter, and specifying at least one of the parameters as a dynamicparameter, the dynamic parameter having an undefined value in thenetwork configuration profile.

The method may further include validating each of selecting the mode,selecting the feature, specifying the static parameter, defining thestatic parameter, and specifying the dynamic parameter.

A method for specification of a network configuration profile forordering client service by a customer having a plurality of clients froma service provider generally comprises providing a list of supportedCPEs, selecting none of the CPEs from the list of supported CPEs,providing modes supported by each of the supported CPE, selecting atleast one mode from the modes supported by the supported CPEs, providingfeatures corresponding to the at least one selected mode, selecting atleast one feature corresponding to the selected mode, providingparameters corresponding to the selected feature of the selected mode,specifying at least one of the parameters as a static parameter,defining each static parameter, specifying at least one of theparameters as a dynamic parameter, the dynamic parameter having anundefined value in the network configuration profile, providing a listof matching CPEs supporting the selected mode and feature, and selectingat least one preferred CPE from the list of matching CPEs.

The method may further include validating each of selecting the feature,specifying the static parameter, defining the static parameter, andspecifying the dynamic parameter.

A network profiling system comprises a database of supported CPEs, adatabase of mode types corresponding to each supported CPE, a databaseof modes corresponding to each mode type for each support CPE, adatabase of features corresponding to each mode, a database ofparameters corresponding to each feature, and a validation engine forvalidating selections of mode, feature, parameter, and value ofparameter. The validation engine may comprises rules for determininginvalid selections of mode, feature, parameter, and value of parameter.The network profiling system may further include a database of defaultvalues for each parameter and/or at least one profile template, eachprofile template having a set of predefined mode, feature, parameter,and value of parameter.

The network profile system allows the customer to specify one or morenetwork and CPE configuration profiles. The profiles serve as basis forclient service order entry such that the information that is the samefor several of the clients are embodied within the profile and such thatonly the client-specific information need to be entered during theclient service order process. The specification of the one or morenetwork configuration profiles can be complete by the customers of theLEC, for example, in a one-time, up-front process and, optionally, othersubsequent process to implement modifications or to specify additionalnetwork configuration profiles, for example.

Each profile contains network configuration information that is commonto all or a subset of the clients or CPEs of the customer. In otherwords, the profile system enables the customers to specify thefunctionality that is shared among the various CPEs such that genericprofiles can be created. The network profile system ensurescompatibility of desired features and the selected preferred CPEs viaits verification process.

The network profile system preferably includes one or more templatescontaining predefined configurations such that the customer may simplifyutilize one or more of the network profile templates withoutmodifications so as to further simplify the customer networkconfiguration set-up process.

The network profile system enables support of CPE features requested bycustomer. Such CPE features may include, authentication, compression,and dynamic address assignment for PPP configuration, IP unnumberedconfiguration, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) parameterssuch as DNS and Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS) information, aswell as simple network management protocol (SNMP) configuration.

The network profile system allows the customers to offer a large numberof CPEs to its clients by automatically determining which CPEs supportthe customer's network configuration. The network profile system alsoprovides a framework for the LEC to more easily extend its offerings ofCPEs and network features which can be available after codifying theadditional CPEs and/or network features into the network profile system.

During the client ordering process, the profiles created by the networkprofile system allows the customer to specify the values of only theparameters of the client-specific network features. In other words, byreferencing the stored customer profile information in the networkprofile system, the client service order entry pages only generallyrequire information that is client-specific. Thus, the network profilesystem simplifies client ordering by minimizing the amount of technicalinformation required during client service order entry.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention will bepresented in more detail in the following detailed description and theaccompanying figures which illustrate by way of example the principlesof the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will be readily understood by the followingdetailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,wherein like reference numerals designate like structural elements, andin which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a Customer Facing Interface and aprofile management system and process;

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a process for specification ofnetwork configurations by a customer;

FIG. 3 is a table illustrating some examples of features and theircategorization;

FIG. 4 is a table illustrating examples of features and their associatedparameters;

FIG. 5 shows four sample templates and their associated modes andfeatures; and

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a process for specifying eachnetwork profile.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

A network profiling system that may be used by a provider of highbandwidth connections to facilitate connectivity and service order entryby customers and/or clients is disclosed. The following description ispresented to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use theinvention. Descriptions of specific embodiments and applications areprovided only as examples and various modifications will be readilyapparent to those skilled in the art. The general principles definedherein may be applied to other embodiments and applications withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the presentinvention is to be accorded the widest scope encompassing numerousalternatives, modifications and equivalents consistent with theprinciples and features disclosed herein. For purpose of clarity,details relating to technical material that is known in the technicalfields related to the invention may not be described or shown in detailso as not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a customer care or customerfacing interface (CFI) 50 and a profile management system and process100. The CFI 50 preferably interfaces with the customer via a customerweb interface, for example. The customer may enter various inputs suchas the customer identification and password at the CFI 50 in order toaccess the customer's database and account. The customer may enter thenetwork profile management system and process 100 in order to specify,e.g., create, modify, or delete, one or more network profiles.

The network profile system 100 allows the customer to specify one ormore network and CPE configuration profiles. The profiles serve as basisfor client service order entry such that the information that is thesame for several of the clients are embodied within the profile and suchthat only the client-specific information need to be entered during theclient service order process. The specification of the one or morenetwork configuration profiles can be complete by the customers of theLEC, for example, in a one-time, up-front process and, optionally, othersubsequent process to implement modifications or to specify additionalnetwork configuration profiles, for example.

Each profile contains network configuration information that is commonto all or a subset of the clients or CPEs of the customer. In otherwords, the network profile system 100 enables the customers to specifythe functionality that is shared among the various CPEs such thatgeneric profiles can be created. The network profile system 100 ensurescompatibility of desired features and the selected preferred CPEs viaits verification process.

The network profile system 100 preferably includes one or more templatescontaining predefined configurations such that the customer may simplifyutilize one or more of the network profile templates withoutmodifications so as to further simplify the customer networkconfiguration set-up process.

The network profile system 100 enables support of CPE features requestedby customer. Such CPE features may include, authentication, compression,and dynamic address assignment for PPP configuration, IP unnumberedconfiguration, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) parameterssuch as DNS and Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS) information, aswell as Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) configuration.

The network profile system 100 allows the customers to offer a largenumber of CPEs to its clients by automatically determining which CPEssupport the customer's network configuration. The network profile system100 also provides a framework for the LEC to more easily extend itsofferings of CPEs and network features which can be available aftercodifying the additional CPEs and/or network features into the networkprofile system.

During the client ordering process, the profiles created by the networkprofile system 100 allows the customer to specify the values of only theparameters of the client-specific network features. In other words, byreferencing the stored customer profile information in the networkprofile system, the client service order entry pages only generallyrequire information that is client-specific. Thus, the network profilesystem 100 simplifies client ordering by minimizing the amount oftechnical information required during client service order entry.

Upon completion of the specification of the network profiles, thecustomer returns to the CFI 50. It is noted that the customer may returnto the network profile management system 100 at subsequent times asnecessary or as desired.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a process 60 for specification ofnetwork configurations by a customer. At step 52, the customer entersthe CFI. The customer may perform various tasks as necessary or asdesired at the CFI. When the customer desires to specify one or morenetwork profiles, the process 60 proceeds to step 100. when thespecification of the network profile(s) is complete, the customer maythen select one of the network profiles from its list of availablenetwork profiles at step 54. Then, at step 56, the customer may thenspecify proceed to enter the values of non-static or client-specificparameters in the client ordering process. As noted above, the clientordering process of step 56 allows the customer to only specify thevalues of the parameters of the client-specific network features,thereby simplifying the client service order process.

Network Profile

Prior to describing the network profiling process 100, a network profilewill be generally described. A network profile typically defines the CPEmodes and features desired by the customer and validated by the networkprofile system.

Network Modes

A network profile includes the network modes and network featuresselected by the customer that the customer desires to support. Networkmodes refer to CPE methods of behavior which have associated featurecapabilities. Modes may be categorized by type, such as forwarding typeand WAN encapsulation type. Within a given mode type, only one of thepossible modes may be selected. Examples of forwarding type mode includebridging mode and routing mode. Examples of WAN encapsulation type modeinclude multi-protocol mode and PPP mode. A particular CPE may supportone or more of the modes. Because only one of the possible modes may beselected within a given mode type, the validation process of the networkprofile system ensures that at most one mode is selected for each modetype.

Network Features

Each of the modes defines which network features that may be furtherconfigured. Network features refer to configurable CPE methods ofbehavior. The features may be categorized into various categories suchas mode, feature type, and CPE support. FIG. 3 is a table illustratingsome examples of features and their categorization. Each of thecategories will be described below.

For features associated with a particular mode, a given CPE must supportthat mode in order for the CPE to support the features associated withthat mode. Each feature associated with a mode may be furthercategorized as having CPE support status of “always” or “verify”. Afeature having a CPE support status of “always” indicates that thefeature is always supported by all the CPEs that support the associatedmode. A feature having a CPE support status of “verify” indicates thatthe features is only supported by some of the CPEs that support theassociated mode.

The features may also be categorized by feature type such as, forexample, a general type, an IP address type, a DHCP type, a LAN or WANIP type, a LAN or WAN routing protocol type, or an authentication type.The feature types may be such that within a feature type, other than thegeneral type, only one feature may be selected. In other words, thefeatures within a feature type other than the general type are mutuallyexclusive. Because only one of the possible features may be selectedwithin a given feature type, the validation process of the networkprofile system ensures that at most one feature is selected for eachfeature type.

It is noted that some features types can be shared by more than onemode. In the example shown in FIG. 3, feature type IP address is sharedby the bridge mode and the PPP mode, feature type DHCP is shared by thebridge mode and the route mode, and feature type WAN IP is shared by thebridge mode and the PPP mode. If multiple modes having a common featuretype are selected, the network profile system preferably allows theselection of one of the features from the union or combination of thefeatures belonging to the common feature type of the multiple modes.

Features belonging to the general type can be optionally selected andgenerally have no relationship relative to each other. For features thatmust be included or excluded, these features are preferably notselectable and its value or state cannot be varied by the customer,although some or all of which may be displayed with an indication of itsinclusion or exclusion.

As shown in FIG. 3, a feature may have additional dependencies uponother modes or features. For example, for the system name, login, andSNMPvl features for the bridge mode, the selection of any of thesefeatures may require selection of the IP enabled or PPP assigned featureof the IP address feature type. In addition, selection of the NATfeature of the General feature type for the route mode may requireselection of the numbered or PPP assigned WAN IP.

Network Feature Parameters

The network features typically have associated parameters, i.e.,information used by the features and which have associated values. FIG.4 is a table illustrating examples of features, their associatedparameters, if any, default parameter values, if any, and default staticor non-static (or dynamic) status, if applicable. Some networkparameters may not have parameters or parameter values associatedtherewith. For example, some network features and/or parameters areenabled by its selection and no further specification is needed in orderto define the parameter. Where a network feature does not have aparameter or parameter value associated therewith, the feature can bereferred to as feature or parameter interchangeably for purposes ofdiscussion. For example, the feature “Unnumbered” does not have aparameter or value associated therewith. Thus, “Unnumbered” can bereferred to as either a feature or a parameter.

The values of the parameters for the network features are the data usedby the network profile system to populate the parameter fields.Preferably, upon selection of a feature, the parameters associated withthat feature are displayed such that the customer may specify theassociated values. Parameters or parameter values may be classified asrequired or optional. A parameter or its value is required if the valuemust be specified before service ordering process for a client iscomplete. Preferably, a default value for each parameter is provided bythe network profile system. A parameter or its value is optional if thevalue may but need not be specified at the time of profile creationand/or during the client service ordering process.

The parameters may be specified as static or non-static. Each parameterpreferably has a default static or default non-static, i.e., dynamic,status which may be changed, for example, by the customer. Staticparameters generally have the same values for all clients that utilizethe given network profile and are preferably specified at the time ofprofile creation by the customer. Static parameters are preferably notdisplayed during the client service ordering process so as to simplifythe client service ordering process. Alternatively, the staticparameters and their associated values may be display but cannot bealtered during the client service ordering process. In contrast,non-static or dynamic parameters are determined and specified on aclient-by-client or an order-by-order basis during the client serviceordering process. Preferably, only the non-static or dynamic parametersare the only parameters which need to be specified during the clientservice ordering process.

Network Profile Templates

The network profile system 100 preferably provides one or more networkprofile templates. FIG. 5 shows four sample templates and theirassociated modes and features. The four templates shown are Bridging,Static Routing, WANRIP Routing and BothRIP Routing. Each network profiletemplate preferably specifies a mode and a set of associated predefinedfeatures and parameters. In particular, the set of predefined featuresand parameters for each template is preferably selected by the LEC fromwell-defined and well-understood features sets. The values of theparameters for each of the templates are preferably the default values.

If an unmodified template is used as a network profile, it need not bevalidated as the network profile system preferably only providesvalidated templates. However, if the template is utilized as a basis forcreating a profile which differs from the template, then validationprocess is preferably performed.

The network profile system 100 preferably also allows the customer todefine its own templates as desired and/or to utilize one of itspredefined network profiles as the basis for creating another networkprofile. For example, the customer may wish to specify multiple profileswhich are somewhat similar to each other. Thus, allowing the customer todefine its own template would further simplify the order entry process.

Similar to the profiles created by the customer, each profile templatepreferably has a unique name or identifier associated therewith suchthat references to and access of the profiles or the profile templatescan be easily achieved.

Validation by the Network Profile System and Process

As noted the discussion above, the network profile system and processincorporates a validation system and process in order to validate eachspecification throughout the profile creation process. If the validationreturns an invalid flag, for example, the network profile systempreferably displays the problem and requests reentry of the input. Inaddition, the network profile system may also suggest possible validentries in order to further simplify the service order process.

Network Profiling Process

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating the process 100 for specifying eachnetwork profile by creating a new network profile, by editing apreviously specified network profile, by continuing the specification ofan in-progress network profile, or by deleting a previously specifiednetwork profile, for example. The process 100 generally includesspecifying the profile management option (e.g., create, edit, delete),selecting preferred CPEs and selecting network features supported by allpreferred CPEs, and specifying the configuration parameters of staticconfiguration parameters. Alternatively, rather than selecting preferredCPEs and selecting network features supported by all preferred CPEs, thecustomer may select desired network features and select the preferredCPEs from the list of CPEs supporting the selected features. Each ofthese steps will be described in more detail below.

In the profile management option specification step 102, an interfacepreferably allows the customer to select one of create, modify, ordelete a network profile. It is noted that FIG. 6 generally illustratethe process of editing or creating a network profile although, forpurposes of clarity, the discussion is generally in terms of creating anew network profile. Further, a previously created network profile thatmay be edited can be a complete or partially complete network profile.In other words, the network profile process allows a customer to beganspecifying a network profile and save the in-progress, incompleteprofile until a later time. Although not shown, the process for deletinga previously specified network profile may include, for example,selection of the previously specified network profile to be deleted anda request by the network profile system for confirmation that thecustomer wishes to delete the selected network profile.

As noted, at step 102, the customer may select the option to edit apreviously created profile or to create a new profile, such as using aprofile template as-is or as a basis for a new profile, or without theuse of a profile template. In addition, the network profile processpreferably provides a listing of all available profiles, complete orincomplete, corresponding to the customer such that the customer mayselect the desired available profile(s) for editing or deletion at step102.

At step 104, the customer may choose to select one or more preferredCPEs. If the customer chooses to select one or more preferred CPEs, thenetwork profile system displays a list of available or supported CPEsfrom which the customer may select at step 106. For example, thecustomer may select only CPEs from Cisco Corporation and/or fromFlowPoint Corporation. Preferably, the network profile system providesinformation such as the supported modes and features associated witheach available CPE, such as via a display of such information or via alink to such information. In addition, if the LEC provides a variety ofservices each identified by a unique name, the services supported byeach CPE are preferably also displayed. After the preferred CPEs areselected at step 106, the network features common to, compatible with,or supported by the selected preferred CPEs are compiled and displayed.At step 108, the customer may select the network features the customerdesires to enable from the list of network features compiled anddisplayed.

Alternatively, if the customer does not select the preferred CPEs, thenetwork profiling process proceeds to step 110. At step 110, thecustomer may select network features the customer desires to enable froma list of available network features. A list of CPEs supporting thenetwork features selected at step 110 is compiled and displayed. At step112, the customer may select preferred CPEs from the list of CPEssupporting the network features selected by the customer.

Although shown as separate steps, it is to be understood that after step102, the network profile process may proceed directly to step 106 todisplay available CPEs and, if no preferred CPEs are selected, thenetwork profile process may then proceed to step 110.

At step 114, after the network features and the preferred CPEs have beenselected, the customer may specify configuration parameters for thenetwork features which are static. As noted, static network featuresrefer to those network features which are not client-specific and arecommon to all clients that will utilize the particular network profilebeing defined. In addition, non-static or dynamic network features referto those network features which are client- or order-specific and whichmay be determined and specified on a client-to-client or order-to-orderbasis. By specifying which network features are static, the remainingnon-static network features can vary from client to client or from orderto order. Thus, only those network features which are non-static aredisplayed and whose values are requested when ordering service forspecific clients.

Once the profile is specified after step 114, the profile is saved andis then made available in profile management. The network profileprocess 100 can be repeated as desired to specify any number of profilesby the customer, for example. It is to be noted that although thecustomer is described as performing the network profile specificationprocess, any other party such as the LEC may do so for the customer.

Although not explicitly shown, each of steps 106, 108, 110, 112, and 114also includes a validation or verification component as described above.For example, the verification component of step 114 may verify that thevalues specified for each configuration parameters are within predefinedlimits and/or are compatible with other specified features orparameters.

In addition, as is evident, the network profiling system includes adatabase of supported or available CPEs, where the database preferablyalso includes information on each of the CPEs in the database, such asthe mode type and the modes the CPE supports. The network profilingsystem also includes various rules and/or an engine for the verificationor validation process such that the validation process can determine anyconflicting or incompatible selections of the customer. The networkprofiling system preferably also includes a set of predefined, validatedtemplates as discussed above.

While the above is a complete description of preferred embodiments ofthe invention, various alternatives, modifications, and equivalents canbe used. For example, the network profile system may be utilized forordering cable modem service for clients by customer. Therefore, theabove description should not be taken as limiting the scope of theinvention that is defined by the appended claims along with their fullscope of equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A network profiling system, comprising: adatabase of supported CPEs; a database of mode types corresponding toeach supported CPE; a database of modes corresponding to each mode typefor each support CPE; a database of features corresponding to each mode;a database of parameters corresponding to each feature; and a validationengine for validating selections of mode, feature, parameter, and valueof parameter.
 2. A network profiling system according to claim 1,wherein said validation engine comprises rules for determining invalidselections of mode, feature, parameter, and value of parameter.
 3. Anetwork profiling system according to claim 1, further comprising adatabase of default values for each parameter.
 4. A network profilingsystem according to claim 1, further comprising at least one profiletemplate, each profile template having a set of predefined mode,feature, parameter, and value of parameter.